Every week seems so busy these days (or weeks) I guess.
One week flies into another, one month to the next. Always working on the next deal, trying to put together the next opportunity. Trying to make the next picture happen.
In the short minutes in between this crazy work schedule, which has just seemed to get more crazy recently, with the advent of the new WB deal and with the Brooks company to do moderately budgeted movies.
I had four back to back things to do yesterday, and even though one of them was cancelled and rescheduled for Monday, it was an incredibly full day.
As a producer, you try to follow all good leads. The goal is to get movies made. Good movies, hopefully, movies that make money, of course. Get em made. So when an opportunity presents itself, you have to do your diligence. You take the meeting (and this business is all about meetings, face to faces) and you see if there are synergies, opportunities. And by my estimate, I am full on pursuing bunches of seemingly viable opportunities through this process on a weekly basis, plus reading scripts, doing a bit of legal work here and there, the film festival I run, and trying to have a social life. Did I mention a vacation? (If you recall, I was in florida for the American Black Film Festival – most certainly not a vacation, rather a collection of 18 hour days in the hot sun).
Oh, BTW, I went to see the new Scorcese movie, starring Jack Nicholson, Leo DiCaprio, and Matt Damon, and its really good. It seemed like it might be formula, but its incredibly complicated plotwise but one of our best directors keeps it totally straight. DiCaprio is great in the movie. He and Damon and Vera Farmigia (and Graham King, Scorcese’s producer from IEG on his last three Pics) were at the screening and were very gracious. Damon is a bit of a wise-mouth, but in a charming way.
Anyway, I always preach (me, preach?) balance. And now I have none. Zero, Zilch. Nunca. Nyet. You know what I mean.
And I don’t see how its gonna happen. I get calls and emails all week long for people looking for my time. I schedule them in. I pur them in my calendar. I probably reschedule 20 percent of them, because I just can’t keep up. And with respect to this constant rescheduling, I am becoming one of those Hollywood types that keeps pushing back meetings.
I could get up earlier in the morning than I do, but that means I would just be working longer days, because I know that my days aren’t going to end any earlier. So is that really an answer, or is that insult for injury.
I am truly at a loss. I like what I do, I just need to find a way to do it a little less. Maybe 10 percent; And cuz I cannot afford a paid assistant without an ongoing project, well, you get it. Dont you?
8 comments:
Yeah fundraizing is a pain. Especially if you are that popular as you are :D
Hang on there, one day you won't be able to count the amount of assistants you have anymore.
I'm sorry to hear you're feeling so overwhelmed. On the upside, at least you're busy doing something you love.
see this is why you need an assistant
*cough* *cough*
:)
Franky- Fundraising, as you call it, is a big part of the job. Its not so much a pain, except that there are so many people so ready to waste your time because they like to talk the talk.
Jill - Not so overwhelmed, just fatigued with no end in sight. Im handling it, I think, well, but its darn tiring.
Rachel - You're preachin to the choir.
Yes I called it fundraising lol. Sounded the same to me when working on my startup. Hey, I could have called it begging too.
I hear ya on meeting people. Reminds me of meetings. I always used to take my notebook with me and surf 90% of the time because those 90% were lost time anyway. Actually if they had to say something 10% of the time, it was a succes.
On another note (just came in), others seem to be able to do it. Maybe you might have to consider the no-pay gig too. :D
The no pay gig. Thats OK. I'll stay with the low pay gig, or the medium pay gig, Franky. Im afraid I've kind lost ya.
Sorry you are so exhausted Grumps. When I feel that way, I go to my old diaries (actual books - no blog- so arcane, I know) where I keep all of my favorite quotes. Here are a few faves you might like:
-"The greatest prize can often lie at the end of the thorniest path." - Sondheim
"To climb a steep hill requiers a slow pace at first." -Shakespeare
-"Unless a man undertakes more than he can possibly do, he will never do all that he can." - Henry Drummond
And the most relevant to this posting :
“Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresea, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”
-H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
Hope at least one of them makes you smile :)
Exhausted Grumps. Sounds like exhausted gramps. And missy, I dont like the sound of that (any more than I like your incredible disappearing brethren). I am not that that much older than you (my crack research team got on that after you rebuffed my question).
But seriously, thanks for the quotes. I was more venting than complaining. And I love the Drummond quote.
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